Couples shines as visibility halts Northern Trust Open 2nd round
The second round of the Northern Trust Open was suspended after darkness took charge of the field on Friday at the Riviera Country Club.
Low visibility forced the event officials to put the round on halt. Twenty-eight players were left with abridged scorecards, but Fred Couples stormed forward, firing a score of 66 to surge into the lead. The round will continue at 7am California time.
Fred Couples, the 51-year-old winner of 1990 and 1992, produced a flawless scorecard with three birdies and an eagle. He marched ahead and drove a long straight tee shot at the par-5 opening hole. The ball plunged over the fairway and stopped a few yards
from the rough. Couples took out his 3-wedge and hammered a 100-footer on the green, which flew over to the right side and then rolled comfortably into the hole.
The crowd thundered at the sight of the magnificent eagle that had captured their attention in the initial moments of the round.
Couples, who knows Riviera better than anyone else does, defined his strategy and played safely through the rest of the seven holes. On the ninth green again, he shovelled a birdie that rolled straight into the hole.
The back nine saw the American roll into more action, when the silver-haired veteran harvested two more birdies on the 12th and the 15th holes to reap a score of 66.
The Champions Tour player walked towards the clubhouse with signs of contentment on his face. When asked about his game, he told the press, “I’ve played 150 rounds on this course probably. I do not think anyone in this field has played as many rounds as
I have, so that is an advantage for me. When it does hinder me a little bit, I know how to get it around and when to not try and hit a shot that I may think I could when I’m healthy. I don’t practice.”
Couples, who has been suffering from back pain for the past 20 years, gave a mind-spinning performance on Friday and left all the younger players awestruck.
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